Sony’s biggest strength over Microsoft is that it has several franchises made by its own studios that push the medium forward, such as The Last of Us, God of War, and Death Stranding. Microsoft has its own exclusive franchises such as Gears of War, Forza, and Halo but none of them have had the same impact as PlayStation’s output. Halo may have gotten millions in sales in its heyday but so did Spider-Man and Ghost of Tsushima. With the acquisition of Activision Blizzard, however, not only could Xbox have exclusives that are special to it like Skylanders and Hexen, but it now has access to three franchises that could compete with three of PlayStation’s biggest IPs. Furthermore, because of the talent Microsoft has accrued, it has plenty of studios and developers to make these titles.
RELATED: Microsoft’s Reputation is On the Line with Activision Blizzard
The Bloodborne Competitor
The first titles to compete with is Bloodborne and Demon’s Souls. The classics developed by From Software were instrumental in solidifying and popularizing the Souls sub-genre. Fans of Souls games may also know that there was a PlayStation 1 game that has a lot in common with the Souls games and feels like a progenitor to the series as a whole.
That game is Nightmare Creatures, an action survival horror title originally released in 1997 by Activision. There were two games made in the franchise, developed by former studio Kalisto Entertainment, with a sequel released in 2000 for the PlayStation and Dreamcast. The game featured a gothic horror setting and a story dealing with the occult, similar to Bloodborne. It also utilizes both melee and a bunch of other weapons including a flint pistol, just like Bloodborne. It even has a combat system that’s focused on countering and one on one fights like Bloodborne. Bloodborne did not rip it off by any means, but the similarities are clear to see.
Raven Software will be owned by Microsoft, and they have experience with action gothic horror titles such as Hexen. They even have experience with RPGs since they developed X-Men Legends. They could be tasked to develop a Nightmare Creatures reboot or reimagining with modern Dark Souls mechanics. Perhaps take some influence from other titles in the genre like Mortal Shell and make something that feels familiar but all its own at the same time.
The Twisted Metal Competitor
One of PlayStation’s earliest franchises is the Twisted Metal series. Originally a launch game for the PlayStation 1, the vehicular combat franchise hasn’t seen a new release since the reboot in 2012, but there’s reportedly a new Twisted Metal game in development, as well as a TV show on the horizon. It would be in Microsoft’s best interest to be able to meet Sony at this revival with one of its own, and it happens to be Twisted Metal’s biggest competitor.
Vigilante 8 was released by Activision in 1999 on the original PlayStation and Nintendo 64. It was developed by Luxoflux, also known for the True Crime series, and a sequel was released a year later for the same consoles as well as the Dreamcast. The game had similar mechanics with cars driving around arena-like stages with missiles and machine guns and the like attached to their vehicles. It did have a three-weapon limit, unlike Twisted Metal, but it also introduced upgradable stats in the sequel. It also has a unique 1970s backstory as well as time travel added in the sequel.
Additionally, Activision’s High Moon Studios has made critically acclaimed Transformers games in the past, namely War for Cybertron and Fall of Cybertron. It’s not the same style of gameplay, but it has mechanical beings that can transform into vehicles that fight against one another. It would be interesting to see how that studio would tackle the Vigilante 8 franchise. There was a Vigilante 8 title released exclusively on the Xbox 360 in 2008 with updated mechanics that wasn’t too bad and could be used as a blueprint for a new title or reboot.
The Uncharted Competitor
Uncharted is one of Sony’s biggest franchises. It has had seven entries, has solid millions of copies, and has there’s an Uncharted movie releasing soon. Microsoft has tried to compete against Sony on this front by buying timed exclusivity of Rise of the Tomb Raider. However, that series was a multi-platform title that didn’t belong to Microsoft was ultimately released on PlayStation later on. It also didn’t help that the series was more associated with PlayStation than any other console during its heyday. However, with Activision franchises now in its stable of intellectual properties, Microsoft could compete with one of its oldest franchises.
Pitfall is Activision’s first hit series and has just as much in common with Uncharted as Tomb Raider does. The protagonist Pitfall Harry would jump over various traps and hazards in a jungle and ancient tomb-like setting. Pitfall could also have the benefit of a character that’s more family-friendly than Uncharted, which is an audience Microsoft needs to reach more, so this could kill two birds with one stone.
A character action-platformer title like this would probably work best under a studio like Toys for Bob or a resurrected Vicarious Visions or Radical Entertainment. A new Pitfall would most likely need to be a reboot, and Microsoft would have to give it a large budget so it could compete with the action set pieces Uncharted has.
MORE:Xbox Should Let Toys for Bob Tackle Banjo-Kazooie After the Activision Acquisition
